Page 16 of A Dove To Break (The Dove Institute Collection #1)

Adrian

Alania is locked in our room with the laptop and headphones to watch movies today, and I am off campus at the office with Raul. We have some things to catch up on and generally just need a break. It’s only been a week, and I am so fucking ready to get Alania out of there.

I am sitting at my desk, and Raul is sitting in the chair across from me on his laptop. I abruptly stop and look up at him. “She called me a good boy and told me to come for her,” I say. Raul smirks and sets his laptop on the other chair before looking up at me.

“Well,” he says, rubbing his beard. “ Were you a good boy? Did you come for her?”

“I mean… yeah,” I say.

“But you are confused because you liked her topping?” he asks.

“Yeah…”

“Look… there is absolutely nothing wrong with being a switch. And it’s not even about being a switch, really. You are just appeasing that bratty dominance and letting her lead. She is not dominant overall, but it’s obvious that she enjoys making you feel good. Right?”

“Yeah. She said she loved it, but loved when I took over too,” I tell him.

“Your entire life doesn’t have to be ruled by that dynamic. Treat her like a wife, not your submissive. She is your equal,” he says. “If that means you let her edge you for three hours before you hold her down and fuck her unconscious, great. Don’t live from scene to scene. Just… live,” he says.

“Yeah. I wish I could just take her out of this shit and bring her home,” I say.

“Yeah. Maybe we…”

“Mr. Santos, you have a visitor,” Julio, my guard, says from the door. “He says that he is Alania Remington’s brother.”

“Brently? Interesting,” I say as Raul and I stand up. “Send him in.”

Julio walks away, and a few seconds later, a man enters. How these two are related is beyond me, because she doesn’t look like any of them. “Brent,” I say. “Come in and shut the door.”

“I’ll make this quick. I saw you were off campus, so I… followed you. That’s not important. You are a master at the school, right? You know my sister, Alania?”

“I do,” I say. “Why?”

“One of the other masters was hired by our father to kill her during the Hunt. He was instructed to be her master during the school and then…”

“Fredrico,” I say.

“Yes,” he sighs.

“How do you know this?” Raul asks.

“Because…” he says hesitantly. “I’m being groomed to take over leading The Society…”

“You fucking knew your father was going to kill her? You knew he was leading? What else do you fucking know?” I bark at him.

“I’m trying to keep myself alive. I can’t help her…”

“No. You can’t. You cared more about yourself than her!” I yell at him.

“I can’t help her if he fucking kills me!” Brent screams back at me. “You don’t think I’ve tried to talk him out of it? I’ve been protecting…”

“Protecting?” I say, calmly.

“Adrian…” Raul says.

“He raped her. Did you know that?” I ask. “Did you know he was raping her from the time she was little? Forcing her to suck him off? Did you know? Did you help?”

“God no. I didn’t know. Why wouldn’t she tell me that?” Brent asks as tears fill his eyes. “I’m gay. I’ve done everything I can to hide it. If he finds out…”

“He will have you killed slowly,” I say with a sigh.

“I will be fucking tortured,” he confirms.

“Why are you coming to me?” I ask.

“Because I know what they did to your dad,” he says.

“Your dad and Charles ran everything, and it wasn’t like this.

Women had freedom, and people could love who they wanted to.

Your father was a great man… but Dad had other plans.

He managed to break Mom, so he wanted to break all women. The ones who didn’t break died.”

“Alania is my submissive,” I say, and he sighs a breath of relief.

“I will be the one marrying her, and I can promise you now… no one will hurt her. I already knew she was a target, but I got Charles to agree to let the girls stay in our rooms. She is currently locked in with my laptop, watching movies.”

“Charles isn’t a bad guy. He didn’t want any of this,” Brent says. “My dad was the one who killed your dad. Charles is just a weak man who is being forced to play a dominant role to keep his family alive.”

“Mark is… not dominant. He struggled yesterday when they were paired up with the girls,” I say.

“So…” Brent says. “Mark…”

“Alania said you went to school together?” I ask.

“Yeah… He’s also bisexual…” Brent says, and both Raul and I start laughing. “Is that funny?”

“Please tell me you two are together,” I laugh.

“We are,” Brent says with a frown.

“That’s great,” I say. “Look. So… Mark was paired with Alania. He definitely fisted your sister yesterday.”

“Wait, really?” Brent asks.

“Hand to God,” I say.

“I love that for him,” Brent laughs. “Charles probably put him with her thinking it would be easier since he knows her and knows she would be supportive.”

“Is that why Charles is bending enough to keep Fredrico from getting to her?” Raul asks.

“Probably. He knows we are together and he supports Mark. He is trying to get Mark out of this, but it’s hard,” Brent says.

“Well,” I say. “Let’s focus on just getting her through school. If I see an opening to get her out, I’m taking it.”

“I talked to Charles a few hours ago. He is trying to find a way to speed up the education. I don’t know why they do the Hunt in the fucking winter anyhow.”

“To slow the girls down,” I say. “They aren’t allowed to wear anything.”

“That’s fucked,” he says with a frown.

“One of the girls, the one who was Fredrico’s submissive, almost died last night. The girls are pissed. Everyone is because he is still there. Maybe I could suggest a fast track. Crash course and do the tests. If they move up the Hunt, they can start another class sooner.”

“A week to prepare for the test, rather than a month,” Raul says. “All of the girls are more than capable of passing.”

“I’ll suggest it,” I say. “He’s afraid of me.”

“Everyone is, especially Dad. No one knows if your views align with your father’s or not. But he’s not willing to have you killed,” Brent says. “If you are like your dad… my dad knows he is fucked. No one wants you to try and take over because everyone will automatically follow you.”

“Do you want it?” I ask. “Honestly.”

“No,” Brent says.

“Then, let’s get Alania through the Hunt, and then we will start a war,” I say. “And Alania will be the queen.”

“A bratty queen. Just what The Society needs,” Brent laughs.

“She has always been headstrong, and Dad fucking hated that he couldn’t break her…

She told me once when she was probably ten and I was thirteen…

She said she’d rule the world someday, and all the bad people in the world would pay. I guess she was right.”

“What about your mother?” I ask.

“She… Honestly, without him controlling her, she will need to be institutionalized. He’s destroyed her mentally.”

“I’ll make sure she is somewhere safe before I go after him then,” I promise. “Start visiting Alania. She speaks highly of you.”

“I’m planning to come tomorrow,” he says. “Don’t tell her I came here, please. It’s easier that she doesn’t know anything until after.”

“Especially considering one of the tests is to get fucked by all of the masters and training masters,” Raul laughs.

“God, I can’t wait to tease him about that,” Brent says, but pauses and looks down to think for a minute. “Is she happy?”

“Alania? I think so,” I say. “I’ve never been so enamored by someone so fast.”

“Can you learn to love her? She deserves to be loved,” he says, stepping into an obviously protective role.

“I already do love her. I’d do anything to make her happy,” I say.

“He let her top him and liked it. If that tells you anything,” Raul laughs.

“She acts tough,” I say. “But she’s haunted by memories. She’s been through a lot… At night, she cries quietly in her sleep. When I hold her close, she clings to me and buries her face.”

“Seeing her cry is fucking heartbreaking,” Brent agrees.

“I’ll take care of her. I promise,” I say.

“If you don’t… If you hurt her… I’ll bury you,” Brent says. “Dad has always despised her existence, but if you make her feel wanted and break that trust… you’ll destroy her.”

“You’re a good man, Brent,” I say. “I’ll take care of her.”

When we get back to campus, we go straight to Charles.

He is in his office with his wife bent over his desk.

Raul and I stand in the doorway and wait.

He looks up, and it pisses him off, which makes him ram into her harder.

She moans louder, and he keeps going until they come together.

When Allison looks up, she screams and nearly falls.

“Well, fancy that,” I say. “He can make a woman come after all.”

“What the fuck do you want, Adrian?” Charles snaps.

“Mark is a submissive,” I say.

“Are you here to blackmail me? What the fuck do you want from me? Don’t bring my son into this,” Charles says.

“I’m not going to blackmail you, but I do think it’s in his best interest,” I say.

“What, Adrian. What is it?”

“Speed up the classes. They prepare during the week and test on Fridays. Have the Hunt in six weeks. Then, you can cut the class down from 180 days to seven weeks total. Implement that in the future, and you can get more through faster… Then, whoever it is you’re answering to will get more available submissives, you get Mark out of harm’s way, and I can get Alania away from Fredrico. ”

“He won’t stop,” Charles says.

“He will because he is going to die in the Hunt,” I say. “What do you think, Allison?”

“Me?” she asks, and I nod. “I think you’re right… and your daddy would be so damn proud of you.”

“So?” I ask Charles.

“Fuck. Okay,” Charles says with a sigh. “You better make damn sure those girls pass. Got it?”

“They will do fine,” I say. “I’ll talk to the guys and we will make sure they’re ready. Everyone will comply. Fredrico has no business being in the classes, but I’ll deal with him for tests. If he hurts Alania, though, I’ll cut his fucking throat right there.”

“Yeah. Yeah,” he says. “Oh, and tell Alania that her giggling is louder than she thinks. What is she doing in there?”

“Watching horror movies on my laptop,” I laugh. “I’ll talk to her.”

“God, you’re so much like your damn dad,” Charles says. “I hope you are ready for the shit storm you have headed your way, son.”

“I know,” I say. “We will be ready.”